Passengers denied compensation by airlines for lengthy flight delays caused by technical faults can have their case retrospectively reviewed in the wake of a landmark court case, the UK's air regulator has said.

The Civil Aviation Authority has said that passengers can ask airlines to review their compensation claims in the wake of a Court of Appeal ruling last week that states airlines cannot reject claims for delays of longer than three hours caused by technical defects.

It followed Jet2 denying passenger Ron Huzar compensation when his flight from Manchester to Malaga was delayed by 27 hours because of a wiring defect.

Ruling: Jet2 were unsuccessful in their appeal against a court ruling that could pave the way for millions to claim flight delay compensation.

Jet2 had claimed that under EU laws setting out compensation guidelines, this defect constituted 'extraordinary circumstances' that allows them to deny claims. However, the judges ruled that such faults are 'inherent in the running of an airline' and as such cannot be considered extraordinary.

The case could open the door to hundreds of thousands of claims for up to €600 being submitted by passengers previously turned down by airlines.

However, Jet2 has already announced its intention to appeal again against the decision, this time by taking it to the Supreme Court, and the CAA has warned that airlines might delay processing claims until the outcome of that case.

A CAA statement said: 'The Court of Appeal ruled that ordinary technical problems that cause flight disruption, such as component failure and general wear and tear, should not be considered “extraordinary circumstances”.

'This means that airlines can only cite technical faults as a reason for not paying compensation if the fault was originally caused by an event that was “out of the ordinary”.

'So technical faults such as a part on the aircraft failing before departure will generally not be considered extraordinary circumstances.

'The effect of the judgement is that new claims should be assessed by airlines in the light of the judgement; claims previously put to an airline can be reconsidered in the light of the judgement, if the passenger wishes, unless the passenger agreed a settlement with the airline.

'However, claims that have already been decided by a court cannot be taken back to court unless they are within the time limit for an appeal.'

The CAA initially caused consternation among passenger representatives on Friday when they said that rejected claims could not be retrospectively reviewed in the wake of the Huzar case.

However, after checking the law again, it changed its stance.

A spokesman said: 'The CAA apologises that our earlier advice was not clear. We will contact passengers who have previously sought our help to provide advice on the matter. The CAA will also provide guidance on the judgment to airlines.'